Terms of Use

Last updated: March 29, 2026

These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Trademark Search API, available at tmsearchapi.com ("the Service"). By making any request to the Service or visiting the website, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. Description of the Service

The Service provides a website and programmatic API for searching a database of trademark records sourced from public bulk data published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The website is available at https://tmsearchapi.com. The Service does not provide legal advice, legal opinions, or any form of trademark clearance or availability determination.

2. Access Tiers

2.1 Free Tier

Without an API key, the Service allows up to 50 requests per day to the search endpoints, tracked by IP address. This limit resets at midnight UTC. Exceeding the limit returns HTTP 429. No registration is required. Visiting the website and documentation pages does not count toward this limit.

2.2 Paid Tier

You may generate an API key by calling POST /api/keys. The key starts with zero credits. To add credits, send exactly $20.00 USD in USDC, USDT, or DAI on Base Mainnet (chainId 8453) to the published payment address, then submit the transaction hash as proof in the X-Payment header of any search request.

A verified payment grants 5,000 requests valid for 30 days from the date of payment. Your API key, credit balance, payment date, and payment transaction history are stored persistently in a database and survive server restarts.

3. Payments and Refunds

3.1 Accepted Payment Methods

Payments are accepted only in USDC, USDT, or DAI on Base Mainnet (chainId 8453). Payments sent via any other network, chain, token, or address will not be credited and cannot be recovered by the Service operator.

3.2 No Refunds

All payments are final and non-refundable. Because payments are settled on-chain and credits are consumed by use, refunds are not issued under any circumstances, including:

User error in submitting a search query
API unavailability during the credit period
Failure to use credits before the 30-day expiry

You accept this risk when you submit an on-chain payment.

3.3 No Chargebacks

Cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible by design. There is no mechanism for chargebacks or payment disputes via the blockchain.

3.4 Duplicate Payments

Each on-chain transaction hash may only be used once to unlock credits. Submitting the same transaction hash a second time will be rejected with HTTP 402. Sending two separate on-chain transactions will result in two separate credit top-ups (5,000 credits each).

4. Acceptable Use

You may use the Service to:

Query trademark records for research, due diligence, or informational purposes
Integrate trademark data into your own applications via the API
Build tools, products, or services that display or process trademark information

You may not use the Service to:

Circumvent or attempt to circumvent rate limiting (e.g., by rotating IP addresses to stay within the free tier, or by reselling API access)
Submit fraudulent payment proofs or attempt to claim credits from transactions you did not send
Send abusive, malformed, or deliberately slow requests intended to degrade service for other users
Represent the data returned as legal advice, legal clearance, or a comprehensive trademark search
Violate any applicable law or regulation

5. API Key and Credit Persistence

Paid tier API keys, credit balances, payment dates, and payment transaction hashes are stored persistently in a PostgreSQL database and are not affected by server restarts or redeployments.

What this means for you:

Your API key and remaining credits survive server restarts and new deployments of the Service.
Your 30-day credit window runs from the date your payment was verified and is not interrupted by server-side events.
If you lose your API key string, it cannot be recovered; the database stores only a cryptographic hash of your key, not the plaintext. You must generate a new key (which will start with zero credits).

Free-tier IP-based rate limit counts are held in memory only and reset at midnight UTC each day. A server restart will also clear in-progress free-tier counts for the current day, but because the limit resets daily anyway, this has no material effect.

6. Data Accuracy

The trademark records served by the Service are sourced from public USPTO bulk data files. The Service ingests these files on a daily basis but does not guarantee:

That the data is current as of any specific date
That any particular record is complete or accurate
That a search returning no results means a mark is available for registration

Always verify trademark information directly with the USPTO or a qualified trademark attorney before making any legal or business decision.

7. Intellectual Property

The trademark records in the database are public-domain government data published by the USPTO. The Service software and website are proprietary. You may not copy, reverse-engineer, or resell the Service or its software.

8. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. THE OPERATOR MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR AVAILABLE AT ANY GIVEN TIME, AND MAKES NO WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR TIMELINESS OF THE TRADEMARK DATA.

9. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE OPERATOR WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF PROFITS, DATA, OR BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, EVEN IF THE OPERATOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

THE OPERATOR'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING FROM THESE TERMS OR YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU PAID TO THE SERVICE IN THE 30 DAYS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE CLAIM.

10. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless the operator and its affiliates from any claim, loss, or expense (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of the Service in violation of these Terms or any applicable law.

11. Termination

The operator may suspend or terminate access to the Service at any time, with or without notice, for any reason, including but not limited to violation of these Terms. Upon termination, any unused credits are forfeited without refund.

12. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Iowa, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any disputes arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in Polk County, Iowa.

13. Changes to These Terms

The operator may update these Terms at any time. The "Last updated" date at the top of this document will reflect the most recent revision. Your continued use of the Service after a change constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

14. Contact

Goodhue, Coleman & Owens, P.C.

7300 Westown Parkway, Suite 110

West Des Moines, Iowa

Email: info@goodhue.com